Multisim Blue

[johngreene]

Just received a link to this in an email today. Looks pretty handy.
http://www.mouser.com/multisimblue/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=august2014&utm_campaign=cm-multisimblue-comingsoon&utm_content=headline

[brand0nized]

Me too! Free program, so can't hurt to get it for myself

[Jdansti]

Cool!  One of my brothers used to work for National Instruments.

[Gus]

No linux? 
I wonder if it will work with wine?

[johngreene]

No linux? 
I wonder if it will work with wine?

It doesn't look like it.

[WhiskeyMadeMeDoIt]

It says free download that  doesn't always mean it's free to use. If you do a little search it's quite expensive. Base model runs $1599
Pro model runs over $4000.  There is no free edition that I see but there is a student and teacher edition.  Student edition is $39.95 with different functionality.  That was in the description.
I hope I'm wrong and they have a free version.

Just went back and read the ad again.  Maybe it is a free version. It's called a component evaluator. I wonder what is crippled in it.  

[jubal81]

It says free download that  doesn't always mean it's free to use. If you do a little search it's quite expensive. Base model runs $1599
Pro model runs over $4000.  There is no free edition that I see but there is a student and teacher edition.  Student edition is $39.95 with different functionality.  That was in the description.
I hope I'm wrong and they have a free version.

Just went back and read the ad again.  Maybe it is a free version. It's called a component evaluator. I wonder what is crippled in it.  

I really hope it's free. I think it could be a really good move for Mouser to pay for it and use it like this. It could really move a lot of parts.

[alanp]

I'd like to know if it can output gerbers, or if not, how expensive the PCB fab will be.

If it is "FREE", with no limitations, I don't really have a reason to not change to it

[MaxPower]

Got an email saying it's available. Anyone tried it yet?

[Hemmel]

Got the same e-mail, I'm about to set it up and try it.

I'll keep you posted

[Hemmel]

The installation file is quite big (773 Mb) which blows up to 956 Mb when decompressed.
The installer asked to connect to a server to check for updates or notifications for the software. It didn't have any.

Have to reboot after installation. I didn't do it.

Started "NI MultiSIM Component Evaluator 13.0 Mouser Electronics Edition" and got this :



Software looks easy enough to use.

I'll post other thoughts after using it for a while.

[vigilante397]

I love the professional version of MultiSim, but the PCB design software that comes with it, Ultiboard, is about the least friendly layout software I've ever used. Maybe this one is better? If not I still have Altium

[PRR]

> It says free download that  doesn't always mean it's free to use.

I have not read any fine-print nor run the software.

However I suspect it is totally free with limitations which would bother commercial users, but may be tolerable to small-stuff workers.

For $4000/year you get a number to call for Support. The guy you call *knows* that if you are not happy with the Support, next year you will take your $4000 to Sim-X Sim-Y or Sim-Z, and he will be out of a job. For free, you get a user-user forum, which may be excellent or a barren wasteland.

For $4000/year you get a Library with nearly every part you might want, and modeling tools so you can ad-hoc any strange parts. Since this "free" software is sponsored by Mouser, I bet priority goes to parts that Mouser sells (that's where they get their vigorish). Since Mouser sells *almost* everything, this is not any huge problem. (I can see that Vacuum Tube users may be stymied... few big sims directly support bottles but some can build tube models; if Blue's modeler is very lamed this may be difficult.)

Obviously the Parts List will feature Mouser part numbers, with a way to upload it and bing-boom UPS drops the box at your door. If you want to buy from Digi-Key or Small Bear, you will have to look-up their part-numbers, *and* if you have done a Layout you must compare sizes and lead-space to either pick parts fit or to hand-fix the layout for the parts you will use.

Despite that *monster* download (my first sim ran on a floppy disk), it can't have every part Mouser sells today and next month. Also it may show price-data which may change at a whim. I bet you paranoid users will find it "phones home" constantly, to be sure of having the latest info. And yes, this means Mouser could know every part you put on your screen, though I don't see how this would tell them what you are cooking-up.

There are no good Layout tools. Computers are good at part of the job but not the WHOLE job. The best layout algorithms are very complex and someone has to pay for that (so the "free" version may have an older algorithm). User-Interface (so you can do your human-brain work) is another very complex (and un-standard) problem, and the "Free" job may not come with the better UI. Personally I like tape on Mylar (or Sharpie on copper), but I'm so 20th century.

Considering Mouser's market, it almost has to output a PCB fabrication file which "any" board house can use. This is in contrast to layout tools "free" from board fabricators... they would favor a locked-in format.

[Hemmel]

Paul that's a very interesting post.

I tried the sim a little bit on my work PC but didn't have much time to fiddle with it. What I did notice was that there are quite a lot of "standard" parts from a "generic" database, probably sufficient for most stompbox needs.
There was also the huge Mouser database and you called it, all the reference numbers and SKUs were all there. Which made it so much harder to create a schematic from scratch because those lists were long to sift through.
OTOH, the search function is very efficient and fast.

I have not tried the "create PCB" functionality but I will, at home, when I have the time.
Right now I'm building my little CNC mill (Shapeoko 2) and with my new madam (she hates it when I call her that, but she is older) my spare time is pretty rare.

When I get to fiddling around with MultiSIM Blue again I'll post my findings here.

[MaxPower]

Apparently it uses a download manager, or whatever, instead of just letting one download the zip file or executable so I was unable to download it. The circuit simulation is the part I was interested in (along with a larger component library).

Oh well, Tina-ti works well enough and there's always LiveSpice.

[Hemmel]

Apparently it uses a download manager, or whatever, instead of just letting one download the zip file or executable so I was unable to download it.

Really ?
I had no problem with the download manager, it's about 180K, very small.
The download then went very smoothly, with minimal bandwidth fluctuations.

[tranceracer]

1:35 in the video he mentions the free version can use up to 50 components.
http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=108248.0